What a list! It's hard to top Sam in Return of the King to be honest. I have two more suggestions though if that's OK.
Spiderman 2 - Peter Parker has the courage to always do the right thing, even though that is not easy. He's constantly beaten down, and almost gives up due to the burnout, yet he knows deep down that helping others was what he was meant to do.
Aliens - Ellen Ripley literally facing her fears and trauma from Alien. When she goes back to rescue Newt, she's terrified but refuses to let her get taken and be submitted to what the aliens will do. Standing up to a literal demon in the alien queen is such a powerful moment.
Thanks so much for reading, Peter! And your suggestions are fantastic, totally agree with both. Love the take on the Spiderman one too, as it’s easy to think of superheroes showing courage in the big action scenes, but, with Spiderman particularly, it’s more in the in-between moments, where he has to keep going even though things don’t always turn out how he expected or even wanted.
I love Paddington as an example here, because choosing to stay kind and polite in a world that keeps testing you is a much braver thing than it first appears.
Absolutely! When you’re kind to others and have it almost thrown back in your face, it can often make you put your walls up. But Paddington continues to be kind and give people grace, and takes courage.
This is a beautiful list; I’m so flabbergasted by it, that it took me four attempts to type ‘beautiful’ correctly!
To answer your final question, I’d like to add some films in which courage is wanted or even necessary, but absent.
I’m thinking about La Vie d'Adèle – Chapitre 1 & 2 (2013), in which the title character lacks the courage to be herself, fearing the response of her peers.
And also one of my favourites, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007), in which the act in the title was committed out of self-preservation, a desire for fame and glory and a huge reward sum, rather than the goodness of Bob’s heart.
Let’s also mention Richard (Greg Kinnear) in Little Miss Sunshine (2006), having to relinquish the support system he documented in his book in which he held such a firm and unwavering belief.
A bit of a dark one, but Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984), the bleak adaptation of Orwell’s dystopian novel, in which one man dares defy the authoritarian rulers.
For the characters, Dunkirk (2017) defines—and defies—what courage actually is!
I will take the flabbergasted state as a big compliment! Thank you always for your kindness and support, it truly means a lot.
Love your suggestions, and such interesting displays of courage across them! I think we all need to be reminded of what it means to be brave sometimes, and it’s not always to make us want to take on the world, just sometimes to get through the day or to take another step towards chasing our dreams. Or simply being who we are, like the first film you mentioned.
Anytime, Jen, happy to! You could always write a follow-up featuring times courage was unfortunately absent, showcasing its importance. Unless this more optimistic outlook suits you best, I can completely get behind that.
As I mention at the beginning of the article, these are just the films that I personally love and grew up with - not everyone has the same taste! I always welcome people to share their own favourites in the comments, as suggestions for others to enjoy 😊
Thank you for writing this. I had a good time. Your list has personality!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thanks so much for reading!
What a list! It's hard to top Sam in Return of the King to be honest. I have two more suggestions though if that's OK.
Spiderman 2 - Peter Parker has the courage to always do the right thing, even though that is not easy. He's constantly beaten down, and almost gives up due to the burnout, yet he knows deep down that helping others was what he was meant to do.
Aliens - Ellen Ripley literally facing her fears and trauma from Alien. When she goes back to rescue Newt, she's terrified but refuses to let her get taken and be submitted to what the aliens will do. Standing up to a literal demon in the alien queen is such a powerful moment.
Thanks so much for reading, Peter! And your suggestions are fantastic, totally agree with both. Love the take on the Spiderman one too, as it’s easy to think of superheroes showing courage in the big action scenes, but, with Spiderman particularly, it’s more in the in-between moments, where he has to keep going even though things don’t always turn out how he expected or even wanted.
I love Paddington as an example here, because choosing to stay kind and polite in a world that keeps testing you is a much braver thing than it first appears.
Absolutely! When you’re kind to others and have it almost thrown back in your face, it can often make you put your walls up. But Paddington continues to be kind and give people grace, and takes courage.
This is a beautiful list; I’m so flabbergasted by it, that it took me four attempts to type ‘beautiful’ correctly!
To answer your final question, I’d like to add some films in which courage is wanted or even necessary, but absent.
I’m thinking about La Vie d'Adèle – Chapitre 1 & 2 (2013), in which the title character lacks the courage to be herself, fearing the response of her peers.
And also one of my favourites, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007), in which the act in the title was committed out of self-preservation, a desire for fame and glory and a huge reward sum, rather than the goodness of Bob’s heart.
Let’s also mention Richard (Greg Kinnear) in Little Miss Sunshine (2006), having to relinquish the support system he documented in his book in which he held such a firm and unwavering belief.
A bit of a dark one, but Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984), the bleak adaptation of Orwell’s dystopian novel, in which one man dares defy the authoritarian rulers.
For the characters, Dunkirk (2017) defines—and defies—what courage actually is!
I will take the flabbergasted state as a big compliment! Thank you always for your kindness and support, it truly means a lot.
Love your suggestions, and such interesting displays of courage across them! I think we all need to be reminded of what it means to be brave sometimes, and it’s not always to make us want to take on the world, just sometimes to get through the day or to take another step towards chasing our dreams. Or simply being who we are, like the first film you mentioned.
Thank you again, Flip!
Anytime, Jen, happy to! You could always write a follow-up featuring times courage was unfortunately absent, showcasing its importance. Unless this more optimistic outlook suits you best, I can completely get behind that.
Just as I suspected, there were no films prior to 1980. No good ones, at any rate.
As I mention at the beginning of the article, these are just the films that I personally love and grew up with - not everyone has the same taste! I always welcome people to share their own favourites in the comments, as suggestions for others to enjoy 😊